ELLIOTT SCORES DRAMATIC, RECORD-BREAKING VICTORY IN 44^th ANNUAL SNOWBALL DERBY

No matter how far he goes in his racing career, a big part of Chase Elliott’s resume will always be that he’s a Snowball Derby winner.

The Snowball Derby is to short track racers what the Masters is to golfers or what the Superbowl is to football players. The Snowball’s list of winners reads like a Who’s Who of auto racing. Former winners include drivers who also have achieved great success in NASCAR, drivers like Pete Hamilton, Donnie Allison, Darrell Waltrip, Jody Ridley, Rick Crawford and Kyle Busch.

The Snowball Derby, held at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Fla., also has attracted its share of famous drivers who were unable to win the coveted trophy. That list includes some of NASCAR’s greatest drivers, among them Dale Earnhardt, Mark Martin, David Pearson and Elliott’s own father, Bill Elliott, who ran the Snowball twice, in 1981 and 1982, but failed to finish either time.

Elliott not only won the Derby, he became the youngest winner in the 44-year-history of the race as he won after turning 16 the Monday before. And he did it in dramatic fashion, outrunning D.J. VanderLey in a five-lap, door-to-door duel to seal the victory.

“It’s what I’ve been looking forward to all year”, Elliott said as he held a tight grip on the coveted trophy from Victory Lane. “I don’t think I’m ever going to let it go.

“I thank Aaron’s and Mom and Dad and the grace of God, and I have to thank my team. They made this happen. They stayed calm fixed the car, and we never gave up.

“I just can’t believe it.”

Like any great triumph, Elliott’s Snowball win didn’t come without its share of challenges.

Elliott and the crew of his No. 9 Aaron’s Dream Machine were among 54 of America’s best short trackers vying for one of the 35 starting spots.

Elliott and his team qualified a respectable ninth for the Snowball Derby, while also competing in the preliminary Snowflake 100, where he was the defending winner. Elliott started 27^th in the Snowflake and had worked his way to 16^th before being collected in a crash. His Aaron’s team replaced the radiator, and he stormed back to finish fifth and more importantly show that he and his team would do whatever it took to overcome a potential setback.

On Sunday, Elliott was on the move from the start of the 300-lap run. He passed Landon Cassill, Hunter Robbins, Augie Grill, Jeremy Pate and Grant Enfinger to take over the fourth position before caution was displayed on Lap 98, when the Aaron’s team pitted for tires and fuel.

Elliott returned to the track in sixth position. The green flag waved again on Lap 114, and Elliott passed Cassill and Enfinger to take the fifth position before another caution flew for a crash in Turn Four. When the green flag flew at Lap 141, the leaders began spinning off Turn Four and Augie Grill, with nowhere to go, rammed Elliott from behind.

As they did the night before, the Aaron’s crew rose to the occasion and made the necessary repairs under the leadership of crew chief and former Derby winner Ricky Turner.

“It broke the back bumper brace bar, and we had to bearbond it back together because there was no time to weld it,” Turner said. “We came back into the pits three times during the caution, staying ahead of the pace car to maintain our lead lap position.

“The guys did a good job getting everything fixed back, and it all stayed intact to the end of the race.”

Amazingly, Elliott’s tires survived the incident without damage.

As Elliott tightened his belts to take the green flag after his team finished taping the car back together. Always the optimist, he radioed to the crew:“ Good job, guys. I’m not giving up.”

He lined up as the last car on the lead lap in his Impala “Jerry-Lee” in its debut run and began making his way back through the field.

One by one he picked them off smooth and steady, and by Lap 218 he had moved into second place. When the caution was displayed on Lap 220, Turner called Elliott to the pits for tires and fuel for what would be their last stop of the day.

Elliott came out of the pits as the leader for the first time in the race.  Many more cautions played into strategies for teams as the laps wound down, but it was the call from Turner atop the pit box when caution was displayed on Lap 272 that put Elliott in position to win.

Turner left Elliott on the track, telling him: “Stay out. Game on,” even as Enfinger, in second place, stopped for four fresh tires.

“They have to pit to have any chance of catching you,” Turner said. “We have to run our race.”

Over the final laps, Elliott and D.J. VanderLey pulled away to settle the race among themselves, just as Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart had done at Homestead-Miami Speedway  to decide the Sprint Cup championship.

Elliott’s final hurdle arose when a late-race wreck brought out the red flag and set up a five-lap dash for the win.

Elliott admitted that he didn’t have the best restart of his life, but he hung in there with VanderLey and the two jockeyed for the lead before Elliott pulled ahead on the final lap to win by 0.229 seconds.

Elliott said he wasn’t particularly nervous over the final five laps. He was just trying to be smooth and race responsibly.

“I was just trying to hit my marks,” he said. “I knew I had a good car, and I was trying to be smart and race [VanderLey] clean and not wreck him.”

It was a birthday wish come true in a big way, as Elliott told his mother Cindy in Victory Lane.

“I wished for this, Mom,” he said. “I wished to win the Snowball Derby. This is my wish come true.”

Simplified Points System Instituted For 2012

Touring Series Will Intergrate National Series Structure

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR announced today that the points system all NASCAR national series began using this year will be instituted in the regional touring level for 2012.

The points system was simplified to make it easier for fans, competitors and the industry to understand.

Beginning in 2012, the system will be integrated into the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series and NASCAR Mexico Series.

The new structure awards points in one-point increments. As an example, race winners earn 43 points, plus three bonus points for the win. Drivers also can earn an extra point for leading a lap and leading the most laps, bringing the race-winning total to a possible maximum of 48 points.

All other drivers in a finishing order are separated by one-point increments. A second-place finisher earns 42 points, a third-place driver 41 points, and so on.

“Implementing the simplified points system at the regional touring level will make the points structure consistent with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president, regional and touring series. “The change at the national level was welcomed in the industry this year and has provided a points system that is much easier for everyone to understand.”

This year’s NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup ™ demonstrated that use of the new points structure is viable with a shorter schedule, such as with each touring series.

“Considering the tight competition in NASCAR’s touring series, we anticipate that with the new points system in place we will see close championship battles similar to the ones this year in all NASCAR national series,” Silbermann said.

The move to bring the simplified points system from NASCAR’s national series to the regional touring level is part of an effort to integrate uniform race formats and procedures throughout the NASCAR ranks. Earlier this year, two race procedures were changed to bring the touring series in line with the national series. One of those procedures stipulated that if a green-white-checkered finish is necessary, a maximum of three attempts will be made. The other change directed that on all restarts, passing will not be permitted until the car reached the start-finish line.

In some cases, race procedures developed at the touring level have been adopted at the national level. In 2009, the double-file restarts that had come about in the regional series, became a part of the national series race procedures.

Salem, IN (November 14, 2011) – Champion Racing Association officials have announced that they will once again award a bonus to a series team competing in the 44^th Annual Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway on December 4^th. Series officials will award a $1000 credit towards 2012 series memberships and entries if a competing team with the CRA Super Series or CRA Southern Tour during the 2011 season can win the Snowball Derby. If a CRA competitor does not win the Derby, then the officials will award a 2012 series membership and one event entry to the highest finishing CRA affiliated team.

In addition this year CRA officials will award a bonus to a series team competing in the Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100 on Saturday, December 3^rd of Snowball Derby Weekend. Series officials will award a $500 credit towards 2012 series memberships and entries if a competing team with the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by GM Performance Parts during the 2011 season can win the Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100. If a CRA competitor does not win the Snowflake, then the officials will award a 2012 series membership to the highest finishing CRA affiliated team.

“We wanted to add a little something special for the teams that have supported us in 2011 that will be competing in the Snowball Derby and in the Snowflake 100 this year,” remarked R.J. Scott, Managing Partner of Champion Racing Association. “We have the utmost respect for Tim Bryant and his entire staff at Five Flags Speedway for the great job they have done in building the Snowball Derby into one of the greatest short track events in the country. This event is the premier late model event in the country each year, and we are glad to have several of our competitors competing in it again this year!”

To be eligible for the bonus, a team must have competed in at least two CRA Super Series, CRA Southern Tour or JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour events during the 2011 season and must run the CRA Super Series window valance on the top of their windshield while racing in the Snowball Derby or run the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour window valance on the top of their windshield while racing in the Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100. Donnie Wilson got the bonus in last year’s Snowball Derby with the CRA Super Series window valance on his car.

The Snowball Derby has a very strong list of 47 competitors entered to date for the event with several drivers that competed in at least two CRA Super Series events sometime during the 2011 season including CRA National Super Late Model Champion Chase Elliott, CRA Southern Tour Drivers Champion Bubba Pollard, also Mason Mingus, Ross Kenseth, Jeff Fultz, Allen Karnes, Donnie Wilson, Randy Gentry, Kenzie Ruston, T.J. Reaid, Dwayne Buggay, Stephan Nasse, Grant Enfinger, Cale Gale, Ben Kennedy and Augie Grill.

The Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100 has a very strong list of 57 competitors entered to date for the event with several teams that competed with the JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by GM Performance Parts sometime during the 2011 season including 2011 JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour Presented by GM Performance Parts Champion Erik Jones, 2011 Howie Lettow Rookie of the Year Presented by Howe Racing Cody Coughlin, also Jeff Fultz, Brandon Hermiller and Chase Elliott.

CRA fans can keep up with all the Snowball Derby and Allen Turner Hyundai Snowflake 100 action on Speed51.com. More information on all the CRA Series is available at www.craracing.net.

    Elliott Scores Momentum-Building Third-Place Finishes at Phoenix and Gresham

Chase Elliott’s first career start in the K&N Pro Series West division came at the reconfigured Phoenix International Raceway, but racing on a new race track and in a new series is nothing new for Elliott, and as he has done in the past, he turned in an impressive performance.

Elliott, despite being one of the first drivers out for qualifying on a cool Phoenix morning, qualified 12^th with new Aarons paint schemed Chevrolet, then raced his way to a third-place finish in the 125-lap race that was won by Elliott’s fellow East Series driver Ryan Blaney.

He said afterwards that he was more than pleased with his and his team’s effort at Phoenix.

“For us to come out here, first race at this track and first race in the West, that was fantastic,” Elliott said. “The biggest thing I look forward to from tonight is momentum for next year. We have a lot of good things going on at the shop back in Dawsonville. We’re really looking forward to next year. This is a heck of a way to end the season.

“Obviously, two spots better would have made it even better, but we’ll take it and move on.”

Elliott’s father Bill Elliott also said he feels the team has made plenty of progress this year.

“With the winding down of the K&N season I just want to say how proud I am of the effort that our team out of Dawsonville has put into this program this season,” he said. “It was a last-minute decision to allow 15 year olds to race in NASCAR’s developmental series, and they jumped in wide open with zero off season preparation.

“I think both the team and Chase did a heck of a job, and I know that we have a lot to build on for 2012.”

Following a pattern the Elliott team has set this season, Chase Elliott managed to compete in two major races on the same weekend.

While Elliott was racing in Phoenix, his crew chief Ricky Turner, a former driver, was practicing his Aaron’s Late Model at Gresham Motorsports Park where the 28^th annual Rheem World Crown 300 was set for Sunday afternoon. Cale Gale qualified Elliott’s car, but Elliott had to start in the rear of the field because of the driver change.

With Bill Elliott at the controls of the family plane, the Elliotts flew back to Georgia, departing at 4:30 a.m. race morning.

Racing at his home track, Elliott drove his way from shotgun on the field to as high as second place before finishing third behind winner Chris Wimmer and runner-up Ross Kenseth. 

Elliott’s last event of the season in a super Late Model will be the running of the prestigious Snow Ball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida on December 4^th, but don’t count out the running of the Snowflake on Saturday night in his Pro Late Model at Five Flags Speedway-Elliott won that event last year and if he can do it again this year some lucky fan will take home a $1000 bonus! Look for more information @ http://5flagsspeedway.com

Don’t forget to vote for Chase Elliott for Most Popular Driver in the NASCAR K & N Pro Series East!

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